VAWA: Violence Against Women Act
About the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)
The Violence Against Women Act or VAWA is a federal law passed by Congress in
1994 as part of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. The
law is far-reaching and seeks to deter violence against women and to offer
protection to victims of abuse, trafficking, sexual assault, and other violent
crimes by creating several forms of assistance. Despite the name of the Act, it
does not protect women exclusively. Men who are the victims of abuse are also
protected by this law. The name, however, aptly reflects that the overwhelming
majority of victims of domestic violence are women.
VAWA also resulted in
changes to the Immigration and Nationality Act so that now it is possible for
abused spouses, children, and parents of U.S. citizens or lawful permanent
residents (LPRs or green card holders) to petition on their own (self-petition)
for lawful permanent resident status, i.e. obtain a green card. This is
significant because it means the abused immigrant no longer needs to rely on the
abuser to obtain or maintain legal immigration status in the U.S.
Immigration Benefits under VAWA
Many foreign nationals feel trapped in
relationships with abusive family members who threaten to withhold filing the
immigration petitions required to get the green card application process started
and completed. Some foreign nationals are afraid to report domestic violence to
the police or seek help causing them to remain in abusive relationship. If you
are a foreign national married to a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident
(LPR or green card holder), and you are the victim of domestic abuse by that
person, you may qualify to file an immigrant visa petition under the Immigration
and Nationality Act, as amended by the Violence Against Women Act or VAWA. Even
if you are divorced, you may also qualify. Battered spouses and abused children
of U.S. citizens and green card holders, and parents of U.S. citizens may also
be eligible. Please contact one of the immigration attorneys at our Michigan law
firm for assistance.
VAWA self-petitions are adjudicated by a special unit
of the immigration service and strict confidentiality is mandated by law,
policies, and regulations. Although VAWA petitions may take a year to be
decided, the petitioner will receive work authorization soon after the petition
is filed. A self-petitioner’s immigration status is protected while the petition
is pending. A general overview of the eligibility requirements can be found
below. For more information about VAWA protections and benefits, and to
determine whether you qualify, please contact us.
Generally, a self-petitioner must meet the following basic requirements to qualify for immigration benefits under VAWA:
About Domestic Violence (DV)
Domestic
violence is a criminal act, punishable by law. It involves the abuse of the
victim by her or his intimate partner. Under VAWA, abuse of a spouse, parent or
child is recognized as a basis for immigration benefits. (Many state laws extend
the definition and punish abuse to any household member.) Although domestic
violence is not limited to married couples, and often occurs between unmarried
partners, for purposes of obtaining an immigration benefit under VAWA, unmarried
victims do not qualify. Domestic violence is not defined solely by physical
abuse, though that is an extremely common aspect of the abuse. Sexual,
emotional, and mental abuse can also form the basis of domestic violence and are
prevalent in most domestic violence situations.
Abuse can be manifested in
various forms of control. For foreign national victims, this abusive control
likely includes threats of calling the immigration authorities or the police,
hiding the victim’s immigration papers, passport, and other important documents,
preventing him or her from learning English, and isolating him or her from
friends and family.
If you are the victim of domestic violence (or if you
know someone who is), your safety is the highest priority. There are several
local and national organizations that may be able to provide you with
assistance. Help is available from the National Domestic Violence Hotline at
1-800-799-7233 or 1-800-787-3224 (TDD). The hotline has information about
shelters, mental health care, legal advice and other types of assistance. For
more information, visit the National Domestic Violence website. If you live in the Metropolitan Detroit
area, you may contact HAVEN via their crisis hotline at 1-248-334-1274, toll
free at I-877-922-1274, or TTY at I-248-334-1290, available 24 hours a day, 7
days a week, or visit their website at
HAVEN.
About Trafficking
Although
victims of domestic violence may also be the victims of trafficking, the two
crimes do not always overlap. Trafficking is a crime and an abuse of human
rights that results in forced or coerced labor or commercial sexual exploitation
of a person. Thousands of children, women, and men enter the U.S. as victims of
trafficking each year. There are laws in place to protect and assist victims of
trafficking. Please contact us for more information about immigration benefits
available to trafficking victims.
If you have been trafficked, or believe
you know someone who is the victim of human trafficking, you may contact the
National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 1-888-373-7888 for assistance. You
may also report suspicious activities to federal authorities at 1-866-347-2423.
The Law Firm of Antone, Casagrande & Adwers, P.C. helps individuals and businesses worldwide with all of their US immigration needs including employment visas, obtaining green cards for business and corporate employees and family members, visas for doctors, nurses, therapists, and other health care workers, together with waivers for physicians under J visa training program, labor certifications (PERM), national interest waivers, marriage-based adjustments and green cards, fiancee visas, family immigration preferences, students, naturalization and citizenship, including medical waivers, asylum, deportation, hardship waivers, voluntary departure and removal. We serve clients in southeast Michigan including the Detroit Metro area, Ann Arbor, and Lansing. With offices in Farmington Hills, MI, we are close to Southfield, Troy, West Bloomfield, Birmingham, Novi, Rochester and Auburn Hills in Oakland County; Canton, Plymouth, Dearborn, and Detroit in Wayne County; Warren, Sterling Heights, and Mount Clemens in Macomb County; Brighton and Howell in Livingston County; Lansing in Ingham County; City of Monroe in Monroe County, Ann Arbor in Washtenaw County; Grand Rapids in Kent County; Battle Creek in Calhoun County; Kalamazoo in Kalamazoo County; Benton Harbor in Berrien County; Holland in Ottawa County; Flint in Genesee County; Ludington in Mason County; Muskegon in Muskegon County; and Traverse City in Grand Traverse County, Michigan. Although many of our clients are located in the tri-county area of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb, we also serve clients in many cities and states in the U.S. including Cleveland, Toledo and Cincinnati, Ohio; Chicago, Illinois; Milwaukee and Green Bay, Wisconsin; Indianapolis, Indiana; Buffalo, New York; Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego, California; Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona; Dallas, Houston, El Paso and Galveston, Texas; Miami, Florida; Washington D.C.; Virginia, Minnesota, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and many others. In addition to the United States, we also serve Canadian nationals from numerous provinces in Canada, including Toronto and Windsor in Ontario; Montreal in Quebec; Halifax in Nova Scotia; and Vancouver, British Columbia. We also serve cities and countries such as London, England; Scotland and other countries of the United Kingdom (U.K.); Mexico, Paris, France; Frankfurt and Berlin, Germany; Tokyo, Japan; India; Brazil; Rome, Italy; Shanghai and Beijing, China; Belgium; the Philippines, and many other countries in Europe, Asia and South America. |